Educational



(No Model.)

s. s. BARRETT. EDUCATIONAL APPLIANCE. No. 480,164. Patented Aug. 2, 1892.

Jr- C 6 10 1" W a; 7m 1 J/Z six alusfiz reyudlfen i UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE..

SAM S. BARRETT, OF SALEM, MISSOURI.

EDUCATIONAL APPLIANCE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 480,164, dated August 2, 1892. Application filed April 2, 1892. Serial No. 427,513. (No model.)

To (tZZ whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, SAM S. BARRETT, a citizen of the United States, residing at Salem, in the county of Dent and State of Missouri, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Educational Appliances; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

My invention has relation to improvements in educational appliances, and its novelty will be fully understood from the following description and claims when taken in conjunction with the annexed drawings, in which Figure 1 is a front elevation of my improved appliance. Fig. 2 is a horizontal transverse section taken in the planeindicated by the line as 00 of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a vertical section taken in the plane indicated by the line y y of Fig. 1, and Fig. 4 is a perspective view of one of the card-holders removed.

Experience has proven that in the teaching of elementary arithmetic it is difficult to teach children to associate the spoken number, the written number, the figures, the number of objects, and the fundamental signs and principles of arithmetic, by reason of the fact that all of these things have been taught separately.

The object of this invention is to provide an appliance of an exceedingly cheap and simple construction, through the medium of which the written number, the figures, the number of objects, and the fundamental signs and principles employed may be readily associated or combined, and thus presented to the pupil.

In the drawings annexed, similar letters designate corresponding parts throughout the several views, referring to which- A indicates the side uprights of my improved appliance, which are preferably provided with suitable feet, as B, whereby the appliance may be stood upon a floor or other base. These uprights A, which are preferably formed of strips of sheet metal bent upon themselves to form the inner vertical ways or grooves, are provided in the front walls of said grooves, at intermediate points in their length, with notches 0r recesses C, which are designed for a purpose presently described.

Seated in the ways or grooves of the up rights A, beneath the upper-and lower notches or recesses therein, are blackboards D, upon which the numbers to be taught are written. Extending through the transverse walls of the uprights A, beneath the blackboards D and connecting the said uprights, are abacusrods E, which have their ends threaded to receive the securing-nuts F, which serve to hold the said rods in position. Loosely mounted upon the abacus-rods E are counters G, which are designed to be grouped in series, so as to clearly impart the number of objects written upon the board above.

M indicates my improved cardholders, which are designed to normally rest within the ways or grooves of the uprights A upon the upper edges of the blackboards D, and are adapted to be readily removed and replaced through the notches or recesses O in the front walls of the uprights, for a purpose presently understood. These holders M are formed of strips of spring metal bent upon themselves, as shown in Fig.3, the walls thereof being curved inwardly at a point about midway their height, thus leaving a passage slightly smaller than the thickness of the card,whereby it will be perceived that they will not only seat the cards N, but will clamp the same and hold them securely in position.

Upon the cards N are printed or written figures and the fundamental signs of arithmetic, which are designed to be associated with the written numbers upon the blackboards and the number of objects represented by the abacus-counters G, whereby it will be readily perceived that an example may be clearly illustrated and a child enabled to quickly understand the same.

By reason of the card-holders M being removable it will be readily perceived that they may be taken out of the frame and given to children, who may place the numbered cards therein, and thereby, through practice, more quickly understand the same.

By the provision of the abacus-rods havin their ends threaded and the nuts for scour ing said rods in position it will be readily perceived that the appliance may be quickly taken apart and laid away or packed in a small space.

Although my improved appliance is adapted more especially for teaching elementary arithmetic, it may be employed for teaching orthography by writing the names of objects upon the blackboards and placing cards having pictures of the objects in the card-holders above the blackboards.

Although I have specifically described the construction and relative arrangement of the several elements of my improved appliance, yet I do not desire to be confined to the same, as such changes or modification may be made as fairly fall within the scope of my invention.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. In an educational appliance, substantially as described, the combination, with the side uprights having vertical grooves or ways in their inner edges and a notch or recess in the front wall of each of said ways or grooves, a blackboard seated in the ways or grooves of the uprightsand resting between the same, and a suitable means for connecting the said uprights, of a card-holder having a groove to receive cards and adapted to be introduced into the ways or grooves of the uprights through the notches or recesses in the front walls thereof, substantially as specified.

2. In an educational appliance, substantially as described, the combination, with the side uprights having vertical grooves or ways in their inner edges and a notch or recess in the front wall of each of said ways or grooves, of a blackboard seated in the ways or grooves of the uprights and resting between the same, a card-holder having a groove to receive cards and adapted to be introduced into the ways or grooves of the uprights through the notches or recesses in the front walls thereof, a connecting-rod taking through the transverse walls of the uprights and having its ends threaded, nuts mounted on the threaded ends of the rod, and counters loosely mounted on said rod, all substantially as specified.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

SAM S. BARRETT.

WVitn esses:

W. T. MARTIN, J. M. ORCHARD. 

